**2. Methodology**

Within this context, [6] affirm that an attitude based on immediacy still prevails in business actions, where the management of environmental practices only occurs when there is an imposition of the laws and regulations created in the country, so the importance of evaluating

The socio-environmental theme, mainly on the focus of sustainability, is increasingly inserted in the different types of markets and involves several stakeholders that drive and direct the organizations to management practices and strategies aimed at minimizing the degradation

The social dimension seeks the vision of a balanced society, which seeks a new lifestyle appropriate to the present moment and to the future. It seeks economic development coupled with a significant improvement in the quality of life of the world population, that is, greater equity in income distribution, improvements in health, education, job opportunities, etc. [12].

In the sugar-energy sector, the challenges for social sustainability are related to access to land, working conditions, burning and mechanization of the harvest, and training of employees, linked to the qualification of the workforce. All these factors are addressed in Bonsucro and

Rodrigues et al. [23] argue that monoculture farming practices, such as sugarcane, on large tracts of land have been identified as generating inequalities in the countryside, as well as an obstacle to the social reproduction of traditional populations. The absence of an effective legal system of the Brazilian land structure, capable of regulating and limiting the uses of properties, associated with the availability of cheap labor, has contributed to the expansion of monocultures. These authors also discuss the working conditions in the sugarcane-ethanol sector, addressing issues such as workload, wages, health and safety at work, and within this

After the Brazilian Federal Decree n. 2681, 1998, which determines the complete suppression of sugarcane burning until 2018, throughout Brazil, the harvest mechanization was encouraged and, together with this, the concern of governments and unions about the destination of the workforce will be dismissed from the sector with the growth of mechanization [24]. The change from manual harvesting of burned cane to mechanized harvesting of raw cane has major social implications because a harvester performs the work of 80 to 100 cane cutters [21]. Abreu et al. [25] affirm that it is necessary to carry out programs to requalify cutters who have been dismissed from the labor market to reintegrate them into the labor market and adds that, despite this negative social impact, there is also the positive side of improving workers' health

The economic dimension is often discussed together with the social dimension, as can be seen in European Renewable Energy Directive 2009/28/EC and Bonsucro Certification. Mello et al.

of the environment, as previously mentioned, and social problems [22].

subject, the most discussed point is the manual harvesting of sugarcane.

these aspects.

*1.2.2. Social dimension*

32 Sugarcane - Technology and Research

were evaluated in this study.

and people living in the sugarcane areas.

*1.2.3. Economic dimension*

The study adopted the multiple case study methodology, with unit analysis, to investigate different practices related to sustainability adopted by four sugarcane plants of different sizes and positions in the sugar-ethanol market, previously selected by a primary and general questionnaire.

The research has qualitative character with descriptive nature. According to Ref. [28] when considering the scope of qualitative research, several approaches are possible, among them: case studies (for a deep contextual analysis of few facts or conditions), detailed interviews, and/or interviews with specialists (for information on influential or well-informed people in an organization or community), document review, and so on. In this work, all these approaches were combined to carry out the study of multicase.
